Brace yourselves. There is nothing worse than a horror fan scorned and I'm afraid Nosferatu didn't quite live up to my very lofty expectations. When I sat down alone in a theatre at 10am on the 1st of January, I honestly thought I was going to hand it an enthusiastic five out of five stars. There is so much about this film that is good but I can't shake the impression that it is overall a middling experience.
The Exceptional
Harking back to the 1922 silent film (itself an unauthorised adaptation of Bram Stoker's Dracula), Nosferatu is a gothic tale of obsession and possession as a terrifying vampire Count Orlok (played by an unrecognisable Bill Skarsgård) pursues a young woman, causing loss and devastation in his wake.
Robert Eggers has delivered a visually beautiful period film with outstanding cinematography and excellent detail in costumes and sets. The film begins with the journey of young Thomas Hutter (Nicholas Hoult) from what is now Germany to Transylvania, providing the viewer with an authentic insight into local folklore about vampires and the ways in which communities protected themselves against them.
Eggers makes great use of music, silhouettes, shadows and lighting to create a love letter to the 1922 silent film. One particular scene stands out, where Thomas arrives at Orlok's castle and is filmed walking through dimly lit passages, which thus appear to be monotone. As he approaches the Count, the reflection from the fires glows orange on the walls, creating a colour-splash effect and reminding us that this is not a silent film in black and white.
The effect is a visually spectacular film that is both chilling and unsettling, but horror fans cannot subsist on eye candy and a sense of foreboding alone.
The Okay
The problem is that the plot of Nosferatu is one of the most well-known stories of all time and nothing is going to surprise viewers familiar with Bram Stoker's Dracula, the 1922 film, Francis Ford Coppola's Dracula or, indeed, a host of other adaptations and remakes. What was perhaps surprising was how formulaic the storytelling felt, as if it were merely going through the motions of the source material without adding anything fresh or engaging. Given that this is a direct yet inoffensive adaptation, it would be unfair to mark it down on this count, but that still doesn't mean we needed this remake.
The Horrible
I absolutely love that Count Orlok was so horribly disgusting, with bits of skin hanging off his body and chunks of hair missing. He is grotesque, decaying and there is no trace of Skarsgård in his facade.
If you can feel a 'but' coming, it's this. What Nosferatu does so well is also its downfall and I'm fairly certain they are going to need to implement a Worst Sex Scene award at the Razzies because this film could secure two distinct nominations.
And this was the ultimate issue. Despite being technically brilliant with excellent cinematography, good actors and superb costumes, pedestrian storytelling (and to a much-lesser extent, bad sex) lets this film down. Considering how much I wanted to love this, I feel more than a little disappointed.
I give Nosferatu an okay three out of five stars. It's not that it was bad, it just wasn't great. It's honestly time for the current obsession with remakes to end, especially in the horror genre, and a director like Robert Eggers has already shown he's capable of original storytelling with The Lighthouse. More of that kind of stuff, please!★★★☆☆
